← Matchups

Sam Houston

CUSA · 0-2 · power -5.4 · #248
Our numberJXST -11.6 no book has priced this game

Jacksonville State

CUSA · 1-2 · power +5.2 · #123
Our side
MoneylineJXST to win ours 78%
Projected score 20–32 SHSU – JXST
2026-11-07 · 7:00 PM AmFirst Stadium · Jacksonville, AL CUSA game Early season

The books

No book has priced this game. Nothing to compare, and no ticket to build.

Series Jacksonville State lead 4–2 · 6 meetings since 2014
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game edge Jacksonville State Gamecocks 46 ranks
Sam Houston Bearkats #152 rush offense Jacksonville State Gamecocks #106 run defense
Pass game edge Jacksonville State Gamecocks 150 ranks
Sam Houston Bearkats #259 pass offense Jacksonville State Gamecocks #109 pass defense
Run game edge Jacksonville State Gamecocks 159 ranks
Jacksonville State Gamecocks #48 rush offense Sam Houston Bearkats #207 run defense
Pass game edge Jacksonville State Gamecocks 84 ranks
Jacksonville State Gamecocks #156 pass offense Sam Houston Bearkats #240 pass defense
Sam Houston Bearkats Balanced · 50% run Ball-control Dual-threat QB · 39 rush ypg Jacksonville State Gamecocks Run-heavy · 68% run Avg pace Dual-threat QB · 83 rush ypg
Phil Longo · 2-10 Charles Kelly · 9-5

Ranked by team-unit strength (rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265 D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the 2025 season.

The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above

Who carried each team in 2025
Sam Houston Bearkats
DL Brody Henderson 11 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL #94 DL
WR Chris Reed 7 rec · 145 yds · 2 TD #94 WR
WR Grady O'Neill 12 rec · 148 yds · 1 TD #103 WR
DB Ishmel Atkins 7 tkl · 4 PD #254 DB
Jacksonville State Gamecocks
DB Caleb Nix 18 tkl · 1 PD · 1 INT #18 DB
DL Tae Floyd 12 tkl · 2.0 sacks · 5.0 TFL #41 DL
WR Jamill Williams 14 rec · 188 yds · 4 TD #33 WR
QB Caden Creel 677 pass yds · 6 TD · 2 INT #18 QB

Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no 2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.

Power breakdown
TeamPowerOffDefRank
Sam Houston BearkatsCUSA -5.4 -4.3 -1.1 #248
Jacksonville State GamecocksCUSA +5.2 +2.1 +3.1 #123

Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).

Where the number comes from
Sam Houston offense vs Jacksonville State defense-7.3 pts
Jacksonville State offense vs Sam Houston defense+3.2 pts
Travel · context onlyAway team travels 610 mi

An efficiency adjustment from season-to-date EPA and success rate applies once teams have played enough games; before then it is 0 and the number is the power rating alone.

Situational spots are shown for context, not baked in: travel, altitude and rest were tested against 6,000+ games and the power and efficiency ratings already account for them. Adding them again would double-count.